BOOK REVIEWS
Gösta Bjelkeborn. " J e m t l a n d " i n A m e r i k a — U t v a n d r i n g från
Härjedalen, 1 8 4 6 - 1 8 5 7 (Gävle, Sweden: Westlund & Söner, 1995).
"Jemtland" in Amerika concentrates on the emigration from the
Swedish province of Härjedalen to Illinois, Iowa, and Minnesota
between 1846 and 1857. Published in 1995, the book presumably was
intended as a contribution to the wealth of literature about Swedish
emigration to America produced in conjunction with the sesquicen¬
tennial jubilee year (1996).
For the reader who is not familiar with Swedish emigration histo­ry,
Bjelkeborn provides general background about the earliest phases
of the emigration and explains, among other things, the significance
of Erik Jansson as a factor in the exodus from central Sweden—it was
one of Jansson's followers who brought his master's messianic
message to Långå in Härjedalen. Emigration from this and neighbor­ing
villages is the monograph's central focus.
The first people to emigrate from Långå left in 1846. In a letter
from one of them, a letter which Bjelkeborn quotes at length, there is
interesting information both about "the prophet," Erik Jansson, and
about the emigrants' wide-eyed first impressions of America. The first
Långå emigrants settled near La Fayette, Illinois, approximately ten
miles from the Janssonists' colony at Bishop Hill. From there they
eventually moved to the McGregor settlement near Dubuque, Iowa.
After the introductory chapters, intended to give the reader an
historical context, Bjelkeborn's story moves to 1857 and to the
Härjedalen families from Långå, Tännäs, and other villages in the
western part of the province. These families traveled west to
Christiania (some of them to Trondheim) and then on to North
America, often with Quebec as their port of destination. Bjelkeborn
describes in detail the hardships these families had to endure on their
way across the Atlantic and inland to the McGregor colony—only to
discover there was no land for them to purchase. Earlier settlers told
them to look for land in Goodhue County, Minnesota. This was Hans
Mattsson territory, and there were several Swedish immigrants on
"the Swede Prairie" around Spencer, present-day Vasa. The families
106
from Härjedalen ended their two-month long journey near Spencer
and named their settlement Jemtland, in honor of their home province.
(Up to this point, this reviewer kept wondering why emigrants from
Härjedalen chose "Jemtland" as the name for their settlement.)
Bjelkeborn's story ends at about the turn of the century, by which
time most of the original settlers had died. By using local histories,
letters, church records, and some lengthier studies, the author
recounts the settlers' scare during the Sioux Uprising in 1862, how
they survived bank crashes, and their struggles against the elements
(bitter cold Minnesota winters and summer tornadoes). He also
alludes to the battles between Lutherans, Methodists, and Baptists for
the immigrants' souls.
The book is written in a hybrid form. The author cites a great
number of documents he has used including many major works on
emigration and publications by local historical societies in Sweden,
Norway, and the U.S.. But he also takes the liberty from time to time
to imagine what the immigrants' lives were like. Some of the narrative
sections of the book, therefore, read as if the author had actually been
on location. It is obvious that Bjelkeborn is familiar with the sections
about the Minnesota Territory in Fredrika Bremer's H o m e s in the N ew
World.
"Jemtland" in Amerika should probably be considered more a work
of regional and family history than one of rigorous scholarship. It
includes genealogical information on all the original settlers in
"Jemtland," as well as photographs of many of them, a selected
bibliography, and explanations of terms.
ROLAND THORSTENSSON
GUSTAVUS ADOLPHUS COLLEGE
Ola Lindbäck. "Låt f a r f a r v i l a i f r i d ! " H i s t o r i e n o m en e m i g r a n t
(Stockholm: Sveriges släktforskarförbund, 1996), 126 pp. English
summary.
In February 1906, Verner Lindback, a farmer in Siknäs, Nederkalix
parish, Norrbotten, departed for America, leaving his wife and six
young children, and intending to return when he had earned enough
to pay off his debts. He worked on Minnesota's Iron Range and at
first wrote and sent home money. When he urged his family to join
107

Click tabs to swap between content that is broken into logical sections.

All rights held by the Swedish-American Historical Society. No part of this publication, except in the case of brief quotations, may be reproduced in any manner without the written permission of the editor and, where appropriate, the original author(s). For more information, please email the Society at info@swedishamericanhist.org

BOOK REVIEWS
Gösta Bjelkeborn. " J e m t l a n d " i n A m e r i k a — U t v a n d r i n g från
Härjedalen, 1 8 4 6 - 1 8 5 7 (Gävle, Sweden: Westlund & Söner, 1995).
"Jemtland" in Amerika concentrates on the emigration from the
Swedish province of Härjedalen to Illinois, Iowa, and Minnesota
between 1846 and 1857. Published in 1995, the book presumably was
intended as a contribution to the wealth of literature about Swedish
emigration to America produced in conjunction with the sesquicen¬
tennial jubilee year (1996).
For the reader who is not familiar with Swedish emigration histo­ry,
Bjelkeborn provides general background about the earliest phases
of the emigration and explains, among other things, the significance
of Erik Jansson as a factor in the exodus from central Sweden—it was
one of Jansson's followers who brought his master's messianic
message to Långå in Härjedalen. Emigration from this and neighbor­ing
villages is the monograph's central focus.
The first people to emigrate from Långå left in 1846. In a letter
from one of them, a letter which Bjelkeborn quotes at length, there is
interesting information both about "the prophet," Erik Jansson, and
about the emigrants' wide-eyed first impressions of America. The first
Långå emigrants settled near La Fayette, Illinois, approximately ten
miles from the Janssonists' colony at Bishop Hill. From there they
eventually moved to the McGregor settlement near Dubuque, Iowa.
After the introductory chapters, intended to give the reader an
historical context, Bjelkeborn's story moves to 1857 and to the
Härjedalen families from Långå, Tännäs, and other villages in the
western part of the province. These families traveled west to
Christiania (some of them to Trondheim) and then on to North
America, often with Quebec as their port of destination. Bjelkeborn
describes in detail the hardships these families had to endure on their
way across the Atlantic and inland to the McGregor colony—only to
discover there was no land for them to purchase. Earlier settlers told
them to look for land in Goodhue County, Minnesota. This was Hans
Mattsson territory, and there were several Swedish immigrants on
"the Swede Prairie" around Spencer, present-day Vasa. The families
106
from Härjedalen ended their two-month long journey near Spencer
and named their settlement Jemtland, in honor of their home province.
(Up to this point, this reviewer kept wondering why emigrants from
Härjedalen chose "Jemtland" as the name for their settlement.)
Bjelkeborn's story ends at about the turn of the century, by which
time most of the original settlers had died. By using local histories,
letters, church records, and some lengthier studies, the author
recounts the settlers' scare during the Sioux Uprising in 1862, how
they survived bank crashes, and their struggles against the elements
(bitter cold Minnesota winters and summer tornadoes). He also
alludes to the battles between Lutherans, Methodists, and Baptists for
the immigrants' souls.
The book is written in a hybrid form. The author cites a great
number of documents he has used including many major works on
emigration and publications by local historical societies in Sweden,
Norway, and the U.S.. But he also takes the liberty from time to time
to imagine what the immigrants' lives were like. Some of the narrative
sections of the book, therefore, read as if the author had actually been
on location. It is obvious that Bjelkeborn is familiar with the sections
about the Minnesota Territory in Fredrika Bremer's H o m e s in the N ew
World.
"Jemtland" in Amerika should probably be considered more a work
of regional and family history than one of rigorous scholarship. It
includes genealogical information on all the original settlers in
"Jemtland," as well as photographs of many of them, a selected
bibliography, and explanations of terms.
ROLAND THORSTENSSON
GUSTAVUS ADOLPHUS COLLEGE
Ola Lindbäck. "Låt f a r f a r v i l a i f r i d ! " H i s t o r i e n o m en e m i g r a n t
(Stockholm: Sveriges släktforskarförbund, 1996), 126 pp. English
summary.
In February 1906, Verner Lindback, a farmer in Siknäs, Nederkalix
parish, Norrbotten, departed for America, leaving his wife and six
young children, and intending to return when he had earned enough
to pay off his debts. He worked on Minnesota's Iron Range and at
first wrote and sent home money. When he urged his family to join
107